The ’36 Delahaye “Whatthehaye” Street Rod (LEFT) and the ’57 Chevrolet Bel Air “Chezoom” Custom (RIGHT) are two of more than 140 vehicles from the Ron Pratte Collection crossing the block at the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction in January.

1936 Delahaye “Whatthehaye” Street Rod

The ’36 Delahaye “Whatthehaye” Street Rod (Lot #2515) is certainly one of the most striking automobiles on earth. It is a one-of-a-kind vehicle from the mind and imagination of the late Boyd Coddington and it represents a tip of the hat to the mind and imagination of Emile Delahaye.

In 1894, Delahaye formed his own car company. Judging by the machines he was responsible for creating, or having created, he must have known the future personally. His cars may well have been the very first to look like they were moving fast even when parked at the curb.

Coddington’s effort is the result of 79 years’ worth of hindsight used to improve upon an original design that was already fantastic. In doing so, he added almost eight decades of technology that had previously been unimagined.

Naturally, a completely new chassis supports this car and provides a modern suspension for maximum comfort and performance. The Marcel Delay metal work is breathtaking and the motivation is overwhelming. A Viper V10 engine and its corresponding 6-speed manual transmission look and feel like it was Emile himself who wanted them there.

Built by Body Coddington, “Chezoom” (Lot #2514) is the most recognized and famous ’57 Chevy worldwide and is possibly one of his most famous creations.

The car was actually penned by noted car artist Thom Taylor as an exercise of design possibilities. Fortunately for all of us, speed equipment tycoon Joe Hrudka was visiting Coddington’s shop when Taylor unveiled his sketch. Hrudka said he wanted it and thus car-customizing history began its giant leap forward.

A special chassis was developed just for this car since the original one would have placed the occupants too high inside to cope with the ultra-low roof line that Taylor’s sketches called for. The finished product is said to have retained only 10 percent of its original sheet metal.

A C4 Corvette suspension system and brakes were used at all four corners on this new chassis. An LTI small block with a proper 700-R4 overdrive transmission moves this cruiser along with dead-on dependability.

In 2004, this masterpiece was upgraded again in numerous ways including a comprehensive redesign of its interior. Air conditioning, a new sound system and an XM satellite connection gives it a real touch of space age influence. This ’57 has a custom steering wheel machined to match the four-of-a-kind Boyd wheels at each corner.

The 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air “Chezoom” Custom (Lot #2514) will cross the auction block in Scottsdale on Saturday, Jan. 17.

Ron Pratte’s prestigious collection of automobilia will kick off the 44th Annual Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction beginning Saturday, Jan. 10 at 9 a.m. and running through Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 1 p.m. Pratte’s vehicles first cross the block at 4 p.m. on Tuesday with lot numbers 2000 through 2109 and will continue with lot numbers 2500 through 2530 on Saturday, Jan. 17.